Did Suns Really Get Worse This Offseason?

PHOENIX — The Phoenix Suns' offseason has gone exactly to plan.

Re-signing the likes of Collin Gillespie, Jordan Goodwin and Mark Williams was among Phoenix's top priorities before trading up for Koa Peat in the 2026 NBA Draft and landing Miles Bridges from the Charlotte Hornets.

There's excitement for what the 2026-27 season looks like, though not everybody was a fan of what Phoenix did.

Bleacher Report named the Suns as one of five NBA teams that got worse over this offseason:

"Great spacing was one of the ways the Phoenix Suns managed to post a mid-pack offensive rating last season, despite the lack of a true setup man at the point. In response, the Suns shipped two excellent three-point gunners to the Charlotte Hornets for Miles Bridges, who owns a career 33.8 percent mark from three," wrote Grant Hughes.

"Put aside the unprotected 2033 first-rounder Phoenix gifted the Hornets in the bargain, and this is still a bizarre deal that looks bad on paper."

The move for Bridges was interesting in a variety of ways. Many were fans of Phoenix's high-volume three-point shooting, though Suns coach Jordan Ott often talked about wanting to attack the rim more and control the paint — which was an obvious disadvantage when they bowed out of the first round of the NBA playoffs this past season.

Size was also arguably Phoenix's biggest issue, and while Bridges is bigger than their prior starting power forward in O'Neale, the Suns didn't exactly solve that problem.

Outside of re-signing Gillespie, Goodwin and Williams, the Suns didn't make many outside moves besides acquiring Bridges and trading up for Koa Peat in the first round of the draft — who is also a post-prominent player.

Phoenix did sign the league's top three-point shooter in Luke Kennard, though his prior volume isn't high enough to replace the combined deep scoring prowess of both Allen and O'Neale.

It's tough to say if the Suns got better this offseason, though it also might be a stretch to say they got worse. Many are quick to forget Phoenix had a surprisingly good season even after battling several injuries in what was the the core's first collective season together.

There's hope health and continuity can pay dividends for the Suns next season. While they're still not planning any championship parades in the desert soon, Phoenix attempted to get better with the little wiggle room they had.

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